


Stormy Clouds

by SailorChibi



Series: sunshine home verse [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Adoption, Age Play, Age Play Caregiver James "Bucky" Barnes, Age Play Caregiver Steve Rogers, Angst, Angst and Fluff, Baby Tony Stark, Caregiver Bucky, Cuddles, Daddy!Steve, Diapers, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Howard Stark's Bad Parenting, Hurt/Comfort, Infantilism, Insecure Tony Stark, Little Clint Barton, Little Headspace, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pacificers, Protective Steve Rogers, Sick Fic, Sick Tony Stark, Sleepy Cuddles, Steve Rogers Needs a Hug, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Has Daddy Issues, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Uncle Bucky Barnes, aftermath of adoption, alternate universe - littles are known, caregiver steve, little Tony, little Tony Stark, non sexual age play, non sexual infantilism, thumb sucking, tony stark has abandonment issues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-19
Updated: 2021-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-28 21:21:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,150
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30145785
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SailorChibi/pseuds/SailorChibi
Summary: Things are going well for Steve and Tony - but then Tony gets sick. In spite of his best efforts, it seems to unravel everything...
Relationships: Steve Rogers & Tony Stark
Series: sunshine home verse [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1298807
Comments: 13
Kudos: 220





	Stormy Clouds

**Author's Note:**

> This is an older series but it still has a fond place in my heart, so I was happy to continue.

The first morning that Tony wakes up with a tickle in his throat, he doesn’t really pay the feeling too much attention. Last night, he and Steve had some crackers while watching a funny movie and Tony distinctly remembers laughing while swallowing some of them. It had hurt on the way down, and Steve had helped him drink some water while cautioning him against eating too fast.

So Tony chalks the tickle up to the cracker incident, and really doesn’t give it much more thought. Especially once Steve walks in, all smiles and cheer despite the fact that it’s a Monday morning, and scoops Tony up out of his crib. Everything else is forgotten in the wake of Steve changing his diaper, getting him dressed, and then getting them both breakfast before Darcy shows up.

And being with Darcy is _always_ fun – not as fun as being with his daddy, of course, but Darcy is great in her own way. She always finds fun things for them to do, whether it’s going out to a children’s museum or baking together. The days with her always fly by, and then before Tony knows it his daddy is home and they’re having supper and then playing together and then it’s bedtime.

But then on the second morning…

Well, on the second morning when Tony wakes up, it definitely hurts to swallow. He just lays there for a few seconds, staring up at his mobile and mentally reassessing whether it actually hurts or if maybe his throat is just dry. He lets some saliva pool up in his mouth before swallowing again as a test. It still hurts a little, more than it should, but not as bad as before.

He can’t be sick. Tony closes his eyes for a moment, clenching his hands into fists. For as long as he can remember, being sick has been a _huge_ no-no. At some of the care homes, the people weren’t very nice when you got sick. They acted like you were a burden. Tony remembers that feeling all too well and he absolutely _hates_ it. He doesn’t ever want to feel like a burden to anyone, much less his daddy.

Then there’s Howard… Tony shivers just remembering what Howard was like. The only reason that Tony remained outside of the system for as long as he did was his mother. As soon as Maria passed away, Howard made the arrangements to turn Tony over to the state as quickly as he could. The days before Tony became a ward of the state, however, are best not dwelled upon. Being angry when Tony is sick was the least of the bad things that Howard was capable of.

He knows – hopes – that Steve won’t be like that, but honestly Tony can’t be sure because he hasn’t been sick so far. Steve gives him his pill each morning, and that’s been doing a really good job at keeping his heart condition under control. So he’s been healthy up to this point, and Tony is determined to keep it that way. As the door opens and his daddy walks in, he tells himself that he will _not_ be sick.

Unfortunately, not being sick means not being his headspace. Tony struggles to keep himself out of his headspace as he and Steve go through their usual morning routine. He’s pretty sure that it works. Steve doesn’t seem to notice anything out of the ordinary; he kisses the top of Tony’s head and leaves for work with a smile on his face. Tony’s just thinking he’s made it when Darcy speaks up.

“You’re acting a little funny today,” she says about fifteen minutes after Steve leaves, and Tony barely stops himself from shooting her an incredulous look because seriously it’s only been _fifteen minutes_.

“I’m hungry,” he tells her, even though it’s not true. Luckily, Steve was preoccupied this morning and didn’t even notice that Tony barely finished his bottle. 

“Oh. Well, it’s a little early for our morning snack. Do you think you can wait for a bit longer or would you like a banana now?” she asks, checking her watch for the time.

Tony pretends to think about it. “I guess I can wait.”

“Okay. You’re not feeling Little today?” She watches him with a patient smile, and honestly Tony just wants to crawl right into her arms for a big cuddle. He loves Darcy almost as much as he loves Steve. She’s funny and cute, but also smart and so patient even when Tony can’t put what he wants or needs into words. He knows she would happily cuddle with him all day if that’s what he wanted.

But if he does that, and she figures out he’s sick, she’ll tell Steve. Tony can’t risk that. So he just shakes his head and smiles back at her, a little shyly, because that always makes Darcy melt. She thinks he’s adorable when he’s feeling shy, and Tony may or may not take advantage of that every once in a while. 

Sure enough, Darcy visibly softens. “That’s no problem. We can watch a movie if you want, or I can give you some private time if you like.” 

“I think I’d like some time to myself,” Tony tells her, still feeling a little uncertain. Sometimes people got mad that he couldn’t stay in his Little headspace all the time, and sometimes people – Howard – got mad that he even had a Little headspace. Having dealt with people at both ends of the spectrum, it’s still hard to wrap his head around the fact that Steve and his friends don’t seem to care either way. Especially Steve.

“No worries. I’ve got a test to study for. I’m going to sit at the kitchen table. If you need me, just say something,” Darcy tells him, moving over to grab her backpack. Tony can tell by the way she picks it up that it’s absolutely crammed with textbooks, which, he’s found, is pretty par for the course for Darcy.

“Okay,” Tony says softly, watching her walk over to the table. For a moment, he’s almost tempted to tell her the truth: that it hurts to swallow and that he has a bit of a headache and that he just feels generally achy and tired and unwell.

Common sense stops him from doing so at the last moment. Instead, he takes a deep breath and walks over to the couch. He sits down and picks up the remote, turning the television on. Mindful of the fact that Darcy is attempting to study behind him, he keeps the volume low and flips through the channels to find something interesting. But daytime television sucks, so at last he settles for some silly cartoons.

At some point, without meaning to, he drifts off to sleep. But it’s not a pleasant sleep. Nightmares about Howard are less common than they used to be, but sometimes they still creep up on him without warning. And that’s exactly what happens now. Before Tony knows it, he’s deep into a nightmare that’s a little too close to an actual memory for comfort. 

It’s Howard and he’s mad, and Tony is sick and crying, and he’s _sorry_ but it’s not enough –

The remembered feeling of a hand meeting his face jerks Tony out of the nightmare. His brain registers that someone is standing over him before he even realizes who it is, and Tony is screaming before he can stop himself. The only thought that makes any sense in that moment is _getting away_ before anyone can hurt him. He’s scrambling up and over the back of the couch in seconds.

“Tony!” someone shouts behind him, but Tony’s frenzied brain only takes that as confirmation that running away is the best thing to do.

He hurtles into Steve’s room and heads right for the closet. It’s the safest place that he can think of, given that the back of it is small enough that not everyone could squeeze inside the closet with him – and it’s not an easy place for someone to pull him out of if he folds himself in the right way. He presses his back against the closet wall and tucks his knees to his chest, trying to gasp quietly.

There’s a long pause. Tony squeezes his eyes shut and wipes at his face with shaking hands. His cheek doesn’t hurt right now, but he sure as hell remembers how it had hurt at the time. When he was drunk, Howard could put a lot of power into a blow. And when he was frustrated with how Tony was behaving, it happened a lot. It’s one of many reasons that Tony’s capable of spending so much time outside his Little headspace.

Gradually, he becomes aware of the sound of voices outside the closet. He doesn’t even remember shutting the door during his panicked scramble inside, but they are indeed shut. So he can’t see whoever is out there, and for a few seconds his heart starts racing all over again just because it _could be Howard_. No matter how much he tells himself otherwise, he can’t be sure –

“I didn’t mean to scare him,” someone says, loud enough for Tony to hear clearly, and he realizes with some surprise that it’s Clint.

“I know you didn’t, Buddy. It’s okay. I think Tony was having a nightmare and woke up at the wrong time.” That voice is unmistakably Bucky. 

“I should’ve been paying more attention. I didn’t even realize he was having a nightmare.” And that’s Darcy.

“It’s okay. Steve says that sometimes Tony doesn’t give off many indicators when he’s having a nightmare,” says Bucky. “Although… I don’t think Tony has ever reacted quite like this before, so it must have been a really bad one.”

“What do we do?” Darcy says. She sounds so distressed that Tony bites his lip. He doesn’t like making Darcy feel bad. Not when she’s so kind to him. The nice thing to do would be to leave the closet, but he’s not sure he can do that right now. He’s barely clinging to his adult headspace and he knows that leaving the closet will absolutely send him plummeting into his Little headspace, where he doesn’t want to be. 

“I could go in,” Clint says.

“No way. I think you’re too big for that,” says Bucky. “I don’t want you getting stuck. That’s not going to help the situation. Maybe we could just talk to him. Coax him out.”

“Let me try something,” says Darcy. The closet door creaks open and Tony flinches. Despite the fact that he’s been listening to their conversation, part of him still anticipates Howard staring in at him. He presses himself back harder against the closet, as though he can disappear through will power alone.

But it’s only Darcy, her expression full of a tender concern that immediately makes Tony want to start bawling. He holds it back with the last of his strength, watching as she lowers herself to her knees. She crawls inside the closet, coming close enough that she could reach out and touch but not making any effort to actually touch – probably because Tony is staring at her warily.

“Hi,” she says softly, smiling at him. “You look like you’re having a hard day.”

Tony wants to tell her that he’s fine but realizes that he can’t make the words come. Not without crying, anyway. And that would just unravel everything. So he stays quiet.

“Did you have a bad dream?” Darcy asks him. She doesn’t wait for answer, just adds, “That’s awful. Bad dreams are the worst. I know how unsettling they can be. I understand if you’re not ready to come out of the closet yet. But is it okay if I stay in here with you?”

That’s a real question, and she looks at him expectantly. Tony considers the question. It would be better to send her away, because his throat still hurts and now he’s getting a chill. At some point, he might cough or shiver and then she might realize he’s not feeling well. But at the same time, he desperately doesn’t want her to go. He doesn’t want to be alone with his nightmares.

So in the end, he nods. 

Darcy smiles again. “Okay. I still have lots of studying to do, so…” She reaches around behind her and grabs a textbook. “Could I read to you?”

Again Tony nods, this time a little eagerly. He’s never studied what Darcy studies, but that doesn’t mean the material isn’t interesting. And he likes that she reads to him like she expects him to understand. Darcy is one of the few people who has never treated him like he’s stupid just because he’s a Little. He relaxes a bit, still huddled against the wall, and listens to her gentle voice.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [tumblr](https://tsuki-chibi.tumblr.com/)!


End file.
